It was the dead of night when the ship caught fire, Patrick Aganyebi remembers, but the flames made it seem as bright as day.

The explosion that night woke him and knocked him to the floor. He tucked his phone and his ID card in his pockets, strapped on a life jacket and made his way to the upper deck. As the flames barreled toward him, he prepared to jump nearly 100 feet (30 meters) into the sea.

Five workers were killed and two others presumed dead in the blast on the Trinity Spirit, a rusting converted oil tanker anchored 15 miles (24 km) off the coast of Nigeria that pulled crude oil from the ocean floor. It was by the grace of God, Aganyebi said, that he and two fellow crewmen escaped, rescued by a pair of fishermen as the burning vessel sank along with 40,000 barrels of oil.

The Trinity Spirit害羞草研究所檚 explosion in February of last year stands among the deadliest tragedies on an oil ship or platform in recent years. The Associated Press害羞草研究所� review of court documents, ship databases, and interviews with crew members reveals that the 46-year-old ship was in a state of near-total disrepair, and the systems meant to ensure its safe and lawful operation 害羞草研究所� annual inspections, a flag registry, insurance 害羞草研究所� had gradually fallen away.

The Trinity Spirit fits a pattern of old tankers put to work storing and extracting oil even while on the brink of mechanical breakdowns. At least eight have been shut down after a fire, a major safety hazard, or the death of a worker in the last decade, according to an AP review. More than 30 are older than the Trinity Spirit and still storing oil around the world.

Jan-Erik Vinnem, who has spent his career studying the risks of offshore oil production, said he害羞草研究所檚 sometimes shocked when he sees pictures of oil ships in Africa.

害羞草研究所淚 call them 害羞草研究所榝loating bombs,害羞草研究所櫤π卟菅芯克鶟 he said.

AGING HULLS

The Trinity Spirit was part of a class of vessels that extracts oil offshore and stores it at sea. They are known as floating production storage and offloading units 害羞草研究所� FPSOs 害羞草研究所� or as FSOs, floating storage and offloading units, when used only for storage. Since the 1970s, they害羞草研究所檝e become increasingly popular for developing oil in deep waters and in places where no pipelines exist. According to the environmental group SkyTruth, there are some 240 in operation today.

FPSOs are unlike most ships for one key reason: They stay in place. Once attached to the ocean floor, they can linger at the same oil field for years or even decades. They may be surveyed by in-country regulators or hired inspectors, but they operate outside the normal flow of shipping traffic and the added safety and legal inspections that take place in port.

害羞草研究所淚f a vessel is sitting in a country害羞草研究所檚 domestic waters and is not going around trading 害羞草研究所� then you害羞草研究所檙e not going to have that same level of oversight,害羞草研究所� said Meghan Mathieson, strategy director at the Canadian-based Clear Seas Centre for Responsible Marine Shipping.

More than half the current fleet of FPSOs are recycled oil tankers, according to Oslo-based Rystad Energy, which keeps data on the ships. Senior analyst Edvard Christoffersen said that without a major repair, most oil ships have hulls built to last about 25 years. But some FPSOs are used far longer, sometimes to dangerous effect.

In the same month that the Trinity Spirit caught fire, inspectors found problems with an aging FPSO moored off the coast of Malaysia. The Bunga Kertas was built as an oil tanker in the 1980s, and press coverage of its conversion to an FPSO in 2004 said the vessel had an intended service life of .

But it was 18 years later when a safety issue on the Bunga Kertas led to a pause in operations. The ship害羞草研究所檚 hull had 害羞草研究所� ,害羞草研究所� according to stakeholder Jadestone Energy. Four months later a diver was killed while repairing the damage. Petronas, the operator at the time, did not respond to a request for comment.

Until this fall, another aging ship floating off the coast of Yemen seemed dangerously close to spilling a massive amount of oil. The FSO Safer was built in the same year as the Trinity Spirit, and became over years of neglect amid the country害羞草研究所檚 civil war. Seawater had leaked into the ship害羞草研究所檚 engine room by 2020.

害羞草研究所淚t could break up at any time 害羞草研究所� or explode,害羞草研究所� the United Nations said in a statement this spring.

The ship held more than a million barrels of oil 害羞草研究所� risking a spill that could have decimated fisheries in the Red Sea, threatened desalination plants and washed oil on the shores of countries around the Horn of Africa, according to the U.N. After years of alarm and negotiations, , but the rusting Safer remains off Yemen害羞草研究所檚 coast, awaiting funds to be scrapped.

Age isn害羞草研究所檛 the only measure of a ship害羞草研究所檚 health: Climate, storms and wave patterns can add stress to ship components or increase the pace of corrosion, just as careful maintenance can extend a ship害羞草研究所檚 life.

But the fleet害羞草研究所檚 growing age is well known in the industry. The average hull age of FPSOs has increased from 22 to nearly 28 years since 2010, according to Rystad Energy. The American Bureau of Shipping 害羞草研究所� one of several companies known as classification societies that certify vessels害羞草研究所� safety 害羞草研究所� launched a working group in 2021 to address the challenges of older FPSOs, noting that 55 ships were approaching the end of their intended lives.

害羞草研究所淎 lot of these things are foreseeable,害羞草研究所� said Ian Ralby, a maritime security expert who helped sound the alarm about the Safer.

害羞草研究所淚f they are not well maintained and not watched carefully,害羞草研究所� Ralby said, 害羞草研究所渢hey can sink, they can spill, and they can, as the Trinity Spirit showed, blow up.害羞草研究所�

DANGEROUS TO ABANDON

There has been little to no public explanation of what led to the Trinity Spirit害羞草研究所檚 explosion, though multiple Nigerian agencies had responsibility for overseeing the ship. The Trinity Spirit had been on the same oil field for more than two decades. According to Aganyebi, after the ship arrived in Nigeria, it was never brought to shore for major upgrades or repairs.

Warning signs began years before it caught fire. In 2015, the American Bureau of Shipping canceled its classification and ceased inspections of the ship. There害羞草研究所檚 no record the Trinity Spirit had insurance after that point, according to Lloyd害羞草研究所檚 List Intelligence. In the next several years, the ship lost its privilege to fly the flag of Liberia, becoming a stateless vessel.

By 2019, Nigeria害羞草研究所檚 petroleum regulator had revoked the Trinity Spirit害羞草研究所檚 license to pump oil. Nigeria害羞草研究所檚 head of maritime safety, quoted in local , said his agency had directed the ship to stop operating five years before the blast. Yet the Trinity Spirit was never forced to leave.

Up till the moment of the explosion, there was oil on board. As recently as 2021, according to satellite imagery and ship transponder data, oil was loaded onto a tanker that later docked at a Shell refinery in the Netherlands.

Adeyemi Adeyiga, a spokesperson for Nigeria害羞草研究所檚 Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, which regulates the country害羞草研究所檚 oil resources, said the sale was legal because the oil was produced before the license was revoked. And a spokesperson for Shell said the company conducts robust reviews of its supply chain and complies with all laws and regulations.

Though the federal government investigated the Trinity Spirit害羞草研究所檚 explosion, more than a year later no findings have been released. For months, it seemed the only scrutiny would fall on the surviving men.

Not long after their escape, and still in the throes of recovery, Aganyebi and a fellow crewman were arrested on accusations of 害羞草研究所淢urder, Arson, and Malicious Damage,害羞草研究所� according to their charging documents. Police were acting on a complaint from Shebah Exploration and Production Company Limited 害羞草研究所� the Trinity Spirit害羞草研究所檚 longtime operator.

An attorney in Lagos took on the case pro bono.

害羞草研究所淭hey committed no offense, they did nothing wrong. They were staffers of the company,害羞草研究所� Benson Enikuomehin said. In an interview, he accused Shebah of drumming up criminal charges to distract from the company害羞草研究所檚 missteps. Anything that took place on the Trinity Spirit should be considered illegal after the license to the oil field was revoked, he said.

Yinka Agidee, an attorney specializing in Nigeria害羞草研究所檚 oil and gas sector who was not involved in the case, said the Trinity Spirit represented an 害羞草研究所渁ccident waiting to happen,害羞草研究所� and showed that local authorities failed to enforce their own orders.

害羞草研究所淚害羞草研究所檓 not sure if it害羞草研究所檚 a question of people closing their eyes or deliberately not doing what they害羞草研究所檙e supposed to have done,害羞草研究所� she said. 害羞草研究所淏ut that has resulted in an accident and there has been a loss of life. So we need some explanation.害羞草研究所�

Interviews and an exploration of documents provide a lack of clarity about who was responsible for the Trinity Spirit in the final years of its decline. Though Shebah hired Aganyebi and the rest of the Trinity Spirit害羞草研究所檚 crew, CEO Ikemefuna Okafor said in an email to the AP that the company wasn害羞草研究所檛 responsible for the ship害羞草研究所檚 neglect. The company reported the surviving crew to police, he said, because it had evidence of illegal storage of oil on the ship.

According to Okafor, liquidators seized ownership of the Trinity Spirit in 2018 due to Shebah害羞草研究所檚 outsized debt. Yet in a deposition given one year before the explosion, the company害羞草研究所檚 former president, Ambrosie Orjiako, described how Shebah continued to run operations.

Sustaining fuel purchases, food supplies, and 害羞草研究所渟keletal manpower害羞草研究所� wasn害羞草研究所檛 easy, Orijako said, because 害羞草研究所渢here害羞草研究所檚 no revenue coming in.害羞草研究所� But he managed to fund the minimal operations with family resources, he said, because the FPSO 害羞草研究所渨ould be dangerous to abandon.害羞草研究所�

Adeyiga, the spokesperson for Nigeria害羞草研究所檚 Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, said it was still finalizing its investigation into the ship害羞草研究所檚 explosion and would continue working to prevent similar tragedies from happening.

The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency did not respond to repeated requests for comment, but issued notice in December that all FPSOs and FSOs in Nigeria害羞草研究所檚 waters must have a flag, be certified by a classification society, and maintain official plans for ship maintenance and emergency response.

SAVE OUR SOULS

The deck of the Trinity Spirit was an expanse of rust. Orange rust coated the floor, crept over pipes and trailed from crevices in the walls, according to cell phone photos taken four months before the explosion. Equipment failures plagued the ship害羞草研究所檚 interior: The engine room flooded twice, Aganyebi said, and the main generator plant was damaged and never repaired.

Shebah had started running operations on the ship in 2004, taking over from Houston-based ConocoPhillips. But the site害羞草研究所檚 wells had passed peak oil production several years earlier, according to the energy research firm Wood Mackenzie. Within a few years Shebah害羞草研究所檚 venture showed signs of financial stress.

Oil and gas operators tend to operate on the edge of financial wealth or financial ruin, said David Hammond, founder of the nonprofit Human Rights at Sea.

害羞草研究所淭hese things go from boom to bust,害羞草研究所� he said. 害羞草研究所淭he workers are the last people to be looked after.害羞草研究所�

Aganyebi worked in the engine room of the Trinity Spirit. Within a year of joining the crew in 2014, he said, Shebah stopped reliably paying his wages. Lawrence Yorgolo, who operated the crane on the ship, and Pius Orofin, a deck operator 害羞草研究所� the only other survivors of last year害羞草研究所檚 fire 害羞草研究所� alleged the same in interviews with the AP. The men said they stayed on board the ship because they had few other options and hoped they would someday be paid.

The staff sent repeated letters asking for the money they were owed, the men told AP. One of their last attempts was dated July 2019, with a subject line of 害羞草研究所淪AVE OUR SOUL (SOS).害羞草研究所� They wrote they had worked 15 months without salary and endured, with 害羞草研究所減ains and hardship,害羞草研究所� the 害羞草研究所渉arsh condition and occupational hazards害羞草研究所� of life on board the Trinity Spirit.

Shebah by that time owed millions of dollars. A trio of banks had sued the company over its alleged failure to make payments on a $150 million loan, and in 2016 a judge ruled that Shebah must repay nearly the full amount. A government-run entity, the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria, moved to take over the company and the assets of its president. The ship害羞草研究所檚 staffing dwindled from nearly 40 people to 10.

For those who remained, there were times on the ship when there was nothing to eat, the survivors told AP. Yorgolo recalled how the crew went hungry one year on Christmas. On a separate occasion 害羞草研究所� the worst of them, he said 害羞草研究所� the engine room flooded and the staff worked for three days without food. The radio operator sent a message pleading with oil operators nearby to come to their aid.

害羞草研究所淥ur management was furious,害羞草研究所� Yorgolo said.

When the radio operator next went to shore, according to Aganyebi, Yorgolo and Orofin, Shebah didn害羞草研究所檛 allow him back on the ship. He was the designated person to fire a flare or call for help in an emergency. Had the radio operator been on board the night of the explosion, Aganyebi said, 害羞草研究所渕aybe those people that have died 害羞草研究所� they wouldn害羞草研究所檛 have died.害羞草研究所�

The AP害羞草研究所檚 attempts to reach the former radio operator were unsuccessful.

When it broke in two and began to sink, the Trinity Spirit had at least 40,000 barrels of oil on board, according to Nigeria害羞草研究所檚 environmental department, which responded to examine the spill. It was capable, like most FPSOs, of storing more than a million barrels.

The agency said oil wasn害羞草研究所檛 leaking from the submerged tanks nor had it washed up on shore, but letters still arrived from community members in nearby Ondo and Delta states complaining about the spill. Oil sheens were visible fanning out from the vessel in satellite imagery for days.

Five bodies were recovered, and two were never found.

SINKING SHIP

Among the more than 30 ships identified by the AP as older than the Trinity Spirit is the Al-Zaafarana, floating off the coast of Egypt. At 54 years, it is one of the oldest FPSOs still in service. Close behind it are FPSOs in Malaysia and Brazil, each at least half a century old.

Along Nigeria害羞草研究所檚 coast, about 200 miles (320 km) south of where the Trinity Spirit caught fire, the FPSO Mystras is still in service at 47 years old, although industry reports have noted on the ship. The classification society DNV severed ties with the Mystras three years ago, ending its regular inspections. According to Rystad Energy, it was originally designed to operate only through 2014.

The Mystras害羞草研究所� owner, NNPC Limited, did not respond to AP害羞草研究所檚 requests for comment.

Further inland, the Trinity Spirit害羞草研究所檚 surviving crew members have been left to eke out a living as they wait for the wages they say were never paid. Aganyebi害羞草研究所檚 vision is poor from the glare of the explosion; Orofin害羞草研究所檚 hearing is damaged from the noise. He has a long scar on his leg. Both men spent 19 days in jail.

Yorgolo, who was the only survivor not charged with a crime, fell on his back when he jumped from the burning vessel and was unconscious when fishermen pulled him into their boat. He believes he wasn害羞草研究所檛 named as a suspect only because he spent months in the hospital suffering from an injured spine.

The charges were dropped in October last year after the Ondo State Ministry of Justice reviewed the case. In conversations with AP, the men vehemently denied setting the vessel on fire or illegally storing oil. They blamed the explosion on their employer, Shebah, and the years without maintenance on the ship.

For Aganyebi, it was clear the company had abandoned the Trinity Spirit long ago.

害羞草研究所淣o medical personnel, no safety officer, no radio man in that gigantic vessel,害羞草研究所� he said.

Off the coast of Nigeria, the ship is still visible 害羞草研究所� split in two pieces and half submerged. As recently as September, in satellite imagery, oil appeared to be leaking from the site of the wreck. It害羞草研究所檚 unclear when authorities will remove the hazard or salvage the remaining oil, as slowly, the ship sinks further into the sea.

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